A woman is feeding her baby a bottle

Benefits of Side-Lying Bottle-Feeding: A Comfortable Position for Baby

By: Guest Contributor

|

1 min

Postural Stability and Support

Side-lying is a natural and nurturing position for your baby during feeding. This position provides complete support for your baby's entire body, allowing them to focus on their meal comfortably. With their body weight resting on your lap, a pillow, or the bed, they feel secure, stable, and relaxed throughout the feeding process.

Slower Feeding 

Side-lying paced feeding gives your baby more control over their feed. It allows for pauses between sucks and swallows, facilitating breathing. If milk flow is excessive, it conveniently drips out of the baby's mouth instead of causing them to gulp it down rapidly, which can lead to discomfort.

Reduces Overfeeding

By slowing down the feeding process, side-lying bottle-feeding encourages your baby to stop when they are full, reducing the likelihood of overfeeding. Unlike the traditional cradled bottle-feeding position, where continuous milk flow leaves the baby no choice but to keep swallowing, side-lying enables a more intuitive feeding experience.

Less Gas and Spit Up

In the traditional cradled bottle-feeding position, continuous milk flow often results in the ingestion of more air, leading to gassiness, spitting up, and discomfort. Side-lying bottle-feeding helps minimize these issues.

Comfortable for the Parent

Supporting your baby in your lap while they lie on their side eliminates the strain on your arms that can occur with other feeding positions. This approach allows you to observe your baby's cues and follow their lead during the feeding process.

Five Key Benefits of Side-Lying Bottle-Feeding

  1. Postural Stability and Full Body Support
  2. Slower Feeding Pace for Better Control
  3. Prevention of Overfeeding
  4. Reduced Gas and Spit-Up
  5. Enhanced Comfort for Both Parent and Baby

To further assist you, we have a demonstration of side-lying bottle-feeding on our Instagram page here:

Leave a comment